Visiting Lola passes away, Insurance Expired, Asking for Assistance

Grandparents have genuine love for their grandkids. It is to the extent that they can fly thousands of miles away from home just to take care of them. This commonly happens to Filipino families residing abroad who don’t have anyone else to help them take care of their kids while they work.

Nanay Virginia Barrago is one of those grandparents. She came to Canada with a tourist visa to help her son and daughter-in-law take care of their 3 kids; a 4-y/o, 2 y/o and 1 y/o. Thanks to her, her son and daughter-in-law were able to work.

Her 2 grandchildren were scheduled for Christening in the afternoon of Sept. 16. That morning, Nanay Virginia had a heart attack and fell unconscious. The paramedics were called and came right away. She was unresponsive and the cardiac monitor showed a flat-line. After several minutes of receiving treatment from the paramedics, she got a pulse and was transported to St. Boniface Hospital.

She was admitted to the ICU. Tests were done, including CT scan and MRI. She remained unresponsive and unconscious. The MRI result showed a massive brain damage. Doctors predicted a very low chance of recovery. Sadly, her family had to make a heartbreaking decision of taking off all life-support machines. She passed away on Sept. 17, 2018.

According to her family, her medical insurance expired few weeks ago and was due to be renewed as soon as she gets her extension to stay as a visitor in Canada. Unfortunately, her family now is facing a financial problem as they are now left with hospital bills and funeral costs.

We all know how difficult it is to lose a loved one unexpectedly. If you are willing to give financial and moral support to the family, they would greatly appreciate it. The funeral viewing will be on Sept. 21, 2018, 6pm to 12mn at Mosaic Funeral 1839 Inskter Blvd., Winnipeg. They also have a gofundme campaign to welcome all donations (https://www.gofundme.com/hospital-bills-relief).